Blogs and Commentary

Tambroni, Pietramala Reunited on U.S. Staff

Party like it's 1999.

It might just be time for pre-Y2K flashbacks for Dave Pietramala
and Jeff Tambroni, who on Friday were two of the three coaches
named assistants to Team USA head coach Richie Meade for the 2014
FIL World Championships, hosted by US Lacrosse in Denver. Current
Lehigh coach Kevin Cassese, who had coached the U.S. men's training
team since the fall of 2010, was announced as the third member of
the assistant coaching staff. Meade was hired as national team
coach in December.

Pietramala, the 12th-year Johns Hopkins coach, and Tambroni, in
his second season at Penn State, worked together for three seasons
at Cornell when Pietramala was head coach in Ithaca. Tambroni
served as an assistant from 1997-2000 before Pietramala left to
become head coach at his alma mater in Baltimore. Tambroni replaced
him and went on to lead the Big Red to three final fours, while
Pietramala's Blue Jays' won national titles in 2005 and 2007.

They share respect for each other, with last preseason
Pietramala telling LaxMagazine.com of Tambroni taking
over in Happy Valley, "He'll have them back on their feet in no
time. Some people are saying, 'Well, It's going to take time.'
Everything takes time. He's good at what he does."

Which is basically what Meade sought in his assistant coaching
staff, along with coaches that had a familiarity with each
other.

"We want to attract quality coaches and put together a good
staff that has a lot of continuity and can work together," Meade
said in an interview upon being hired.

No problem there with Pietramala and Tambroni. In their
applications, each expressed a strong desire to work with Meade,
the former Navy coach.

"An opportunity to represent the United States of America in the
sport of lacrosse would be the ultimate coaching honor," Tambroni
said. "Furthermore, the opportunity to work alongside one of the
game's premier coaches and leaders in Richie Meade and the game's
top players would provide an invaluable learning experience."

Pietramala, an outspoken supporter of Meade's after he was
forced to resign at Navy after last season, reiterated his support
with a personal tone.

After Pietramala explained his familiarity with both Major
League Lacrosse and college players that will make up the tryout
pool and his coaching philosophy, he said, "Lastly, the chance to
work with and alongside Coach Meade would bring me great joy. Coach
is a man I respect as a competitor and more importantly as a human
being. It would bring me great joy to see him hoist a gold medal
and finish his career on the right note, as well as possibly
rekindle a career that still has a few chapters left. I would
consider it one of the great accomplishments of my career to stand
on the same sideline as Coach Meade and represent the United States
of America."

Cassese, who has been involved with the U.S. national teams
program as a player or coach since 1998, explained his insight
gleaned during through his international experience. He played for
the 1999 U.S. U19 men's team and went on to become a
three-time member of the U.S. men's national team (2002, 2006 and
2010). He was co-captain of the 2010 team that regained the gold
medal from Canada in Manchester, England.

"While I am not proud that I was a member of the 2006 team that
won silver in Canada, I will say that it was an incredible learning
experience and I am glad that I have that experience under my belt.
It was by far the worst feeling I've had in my lacrosse career, and
it motivated me to make sure that Team USA never settled for
anything but the very best moving forward. During that year, I
learned a lot about what not to do as a leader of this team,"
Cassese said.

The fifth-year coach at Lehigh has the most MLL experience of
any of the coaches, having played in the outdoor pro league for
seven seasons. Since 2010, he has also coached Team USA at US
Lacrosse events such as Champion Challenge and Stars &
Stripes.

"Even though these are the top players in the game, they still
need to be coached and in fact, want to be coached," Cassese said.
"Players and coaches all need defined roles, and they need to know
why their roles are highly important to the team's mission of
winning a gold medal."